Jesse's Girl
by Young and Careless
Summary: He promised her an epic romance but he didn't keep that promise. He never got over her. She didn't hesitate to move on. He was stuck in the past. She was getting married. He's dead set on stopping her, after all she will always be Jesse's girl.
1. Prologue

**PROLOGUE**

Jesse St. James stared at the boarding pass in his hands.

Even though he saw his name written in big bold letters, he barely believed that he was on a plane headed back to Lima.

He believed the reason for his abrupt return, which was too dramatic even for him to handle, even less.

"_Hello?" Jessie St. James, tired after a long demanding day at UCLA, picked up his Black Berry, pressed the green button, and said with a sigh. He had tried ignoring the sound of Queen, his favorite band, singing '_Another One Bites The Dust' but it was too persistant_. The boy unwillingly got himself off the bed and dragged his feet across the room to pick up his ringing phone and see who was disturbing him. But as Jesse stared at the unfamiliar number, something in him just knew that the call was too urgent to leave unanswered._

"_Hello, Jesse?" A stern voice on the other line questioned, making the hairs on the back of his neck stand._

_ He knew that voice. He recognized the familiar scolding tone that always picked apart each and every boy his daughter brought home and deemed them unfit for his baby girl. _

"_Yes." Jesse replied making it sound more like a question than an answer. He wasn't sure if being Jesse St. James was a good thing that day._

"_In case you haven't put it together." Said the man, his sigh ringing through Jesse's ear, "This is Leroy Berry."_

"_Oh, Mr. Berry." Jesse didn't bother to hide his confusion behind the polite façade that the Berry men easily saw through. _

_Even when he had dated their daughter the married men didn't like Jesse much. No matter how hard he tried, they never fully accepted him as a suitor despite his family fortune and obvious charm. So, now, since Jesse wasn't with Rachel he didn't even bother to keep up the act._

No Rachel, no playing nice with Mr. & Mr. Berry. _He thought bitterly, after all he only kept up the act to please her._

"_I know you must be wondering as to why I called." Mr. Berry said, his voice shaking a bit, which was completely out of character._

_ Leroy Berry never took shit from anyone and he never kissed ass. _

_That was an unwritten rule that Jesse knew all too well._

"_Please, do enlighten me." Jesse sounded, clearly unable hide the snideness in his tone _

"_It's Rachel." Leroy said, uttering the magic word, and leering the pining boy in._

"_What about her?" Jesse wondered, staring at the mirror before him, his thoughts wandering over to the brunette with a larger than life attitude._

"_She's ruining her future. She's throwing her dreams away…" Leroy panicked and trailed off, clearly lacking the strength to say what was wrong._

"_What's wrong with Rachel?" Jesse demanded with his voice gaining a sharpness and edge to it._

"_There's no easy way to say this." Leroy fumbled, trying to explain the situation to the clearly concerned Jesse on the other line, "Rachel's getting married."_

"_What the hell?" He said in a stunned tone, barely believing his ears._

"_Somehow Finn Hudson got a ring on my baby's finger." Hiram sounded in and Jesse knew he was now on speakerphone._

"_I can't believe Rachel agreed to this." Jesse snapped as he clenched his fists in anger, "I thought she didn't want to settle down until she was twenty five, or something. I remember her telling me that."_

"_That was supposed to be the plan." Leroy grumbled, "She was supposed to stick with _her_ plan. She was supposed to wait..."_

"_We need to stop her." Hiram added, clearly anxious._

"_I don't understand." Jesse said as he paced around his apartment, something he usually did whenever he was nervous or angry, "Why did you call me to tell me this, Leroy? Rachel and I are done." He added the last part in almost a whisper with his heart literally tearing apart._

"_Because, although I hate to admit it, you're the only one that can talk some sense into Rachel." Leroy shakily replied, clearly keeping the anger management classes he took in mind._

"_You were the first guy our baby girl was ever serious about." Hiram explained further, "Even though you and Rachel aren't together anymore, you'll always be tucked away in a safe compartment in her heart. She'll always have a soft spot for you. That's why Leroy and I know you'll snap her out of it. We need you to help us. We need you to help_ her."

___Jessie St. James still cared for Rachel Berry and his last words before hanging up were simple and short but they confirmed that fact, nonetheless:_

"_I'll be on the next plane to Ohio." _

As soon as he found out, he used all the manipulative skills he learned from Vocal Adrenaline and devised a scheme to help Leroy and Hiram Berry save their daughter's future.

Jessie stared at the ceiling of the plane, the cold wind making his skin prickle, and let a frustrated sigh escape his pink lips.

He had always imagined the next time he would see Rachel Berry and in his little fantasy a wedding dress was involved but so was an entirely different groom.

He couldn't believe how Rachel would agree to marry when she was still in high school and had the world at her fingertips.

Why would she throw away NYADA, New York, Broadway, Singing, her _dreams_ and all for Finn Hudson?

Why would she settle with the same jackass that continuously broke her heart and always picked Quinn, or Santana, or some other bimbo over her whenever he got the chance?

Rage and fury bubbled up in his body. He knew Finn didn't deserve Rachel; she was too good and forgiving for him. Rachel deserved someone who would worship her very being, love her and her flaws, support her through her quest to stardom, be the shoulder she cries on whenever life's being a bitch or whenever she messes up at future auditions, and lastly treat her like the princess she truly is.

She shouldn't want to marry that numbskull not after how crappy and unworthy he made her feel. So why was she going through with this? But who was he to judge? He was no saint either. He, too, put Rachel through hell, seduced her with ignoble reasons, fell for her, and then left her for the sake of winning. How does that make him better than Finn? How does that make him good enough for Rachel Berry?

He had no answers to these questions but all he knew was that he had to get back to Lima and stop Rachel from making the biggest mistake in her life and throwing what could be her bright future. He just knew he had to save the girl he loved, even if she didn't reciprocate the feelings anymore and even if she wanted nothing to do with him. He closed his eyes as he drifted off and faintly remembered the promise he made Rachel Barbra Berry and failed to keep, the promise of an _epic romance_. And this time Jesse St. James was going to make sure he keeps his promise.

**A/N: I hope you enjoyed the prologue. It's short and that's the way I usually keep my prologues. So if you liked this and want to read more do leave a review and show me you care. Reviews and alerts are like drugs for any writer, even me. :)**

**Thanks! **


	2. 1: We could have had it all

CHAPTER ONE

Rachel Berry let out a blissful sigh as she propped her headband on her brown hair after combing it one hundred times.

"Perfect." She smiled at her reflection in the square mirror of her dresser.

She, then, stood up, to smooth down her short pink dress with silver stars all over. She giggled with glee as she saw her engagement ring wink back at her in the reflection of the mirror and quickly slipped into her silver loafers to complete the starry look she was going for.

She grabbed her backpack from the bed, left her dramatically pink room, and took the stairs two steps at a time eager to start another day as Finn Hudson's fiancée.

"Good morning, beautiful!" Exclaimed Hiram Berry at the sight of his daughter's smiling face.

"Morning, Daddy." She said, smiling as she placed a quick kiss on his left cheek as he continued cooking waffles.

"Make me proud today." He smiled softly at his daughter from across the kitchen counter, saying the same sentence he usually says each morning.

"I'll try." She chuckled, giving him the same reply she usually gives each morning, as she headed to the fridge, grabbed a piece of toast and popped it into the toaster.

"Your father just left for his business meeting little over an hour ago." Rachel's dad sighed when he noticed Rachel looking around for her other dad, Leroy, who was meeting one Jesse St. James at the airport. But, despite Hiram's love of gossiping and his secret blog called 'Gossip Guy' (that surprisingly has a lot of followers), he wasn't telling Rachel _that._

"He didn't want to wake you so he asked me to send you his love." Hiram Berry added for good measure as he continued to pour the freshly made waffle mix into the steaming waffle iron.

"Oh." Rachel frowned, clear disappointment flashed through her big brown eyes, making Hiram's heart almost break.

_No, Hiram, don't give into her puppy dog eyes! _Mr. Berry mentally fought with himself, _Be strong! It's the only way you can help your daughter! _

The sound of the toast popping out of the toaster grabbed Rachel's attention.

She turned around, giving Hiram her back, snatched the piece of toast instantly and started spreading blood red strawberry jam on it.

Rachel, then, placed herself on one of the stools by the island, and munched away at her toast, reminding herself to fully chew before swallowing.

She drank a glass of milk to finish her breakfast, told her dad she loved him, and walked to school alone since Finn was too busy finishing up some car with Burt before heading off to school himself.

Leroy berry walked up to gate 22 shortly after he had parked his car and composed himself for the uncomfortable encounter he was about to have with a certain college student.

The overprotective father made his way through the crowd of people, craning his neck to look for a certain boy with piercing stormy blue eyes and a great show face. He soon felt a little tap on his shoulder.

"Hello there, Leroy." He heard a voice greet him from behind.

Bracing himself for the most uncomfortable exchange, the father turned around on his heel to face Jesse St. James, the boy who broke his daughter's heart.

"St. James." Mr. Berry returned the greeting with the same amount of enthusiasm, which is the equivalent to none, dripping from his voice.

"Well, aren't we supposed to get going?" Jesse asked impatiently then he started to walk away, dragging his carry on bag behind him, expecting Leroy Berry to follow him out of the terminal, "We do have a ploy to pull off."

It took every cell in the older man's body not to put Jesse St. James in the hospital that very instant. After all Leroy desperately needed him, especially after his use of reverse psychology proved to be an utter failure on Rachel. No matter how much hate he had in his heart for what that boy did to _his_ baby, no matter how much he'd rather catapult Jesse back to LA, no matter how much he despised the fact, Leroy Berry _needed_ him.

Finn Hudson let out a smile when he saw Rachel Berry retrieving her books from her locker.

He walked up to his fiancée and snaked his arms around her waist, resting his head on her shoulders.

Rachel smiled to herself as she felt his breath tickling her ear.

"Finn." The petite girl breathed.

"Rachel." He said with a smirk.

"I have to get to class." Rachel said as she turned around, still in the jock's arms, "I can't be late for another AP American History class. Or else they'll kick me out."

"But you were late just once." Finn said confusedly, "You know, when we had that make out session in the janitor's closet."

"Yes." Rachel turned pink at the memory, "I know that, Finn, but being late once is more than enough to kick a student out of an AP class. I'm just lucky Miss. Dankly didn't kick me out already."

As she walked away Finn marveled as to why Rachel started to act this way after he popped the question. She started to avoid him and if she gets caught, makes excuses for her to leave. He was utterly clueless; Rachel was supposed to _love_ him not ignore him. She was supposed to be just that sophomore girl that was hell bent on chasing him. Not the other way around. He thought his proposal would, if anything, make Rachel ecstatic and clingy like the _old_ Rachel was. That ring on her finger was supposed to bring her closer to him _not_ push her away, it was supposed to make her _love_ him even more _not_ go the other way whenever she saw him walking down the hall.

Rachel Berry smiled.

Yes, she always smiles, but recently she started smiling even more. Ever since she was proposed to, a permanent smile was etched on her face.

She giddily sat on her desk as her teacher began lecturing. Rachel felt so ecstatic after that little exchange she had with Finn by her locker. Sure, it was simple and little but she lived for such simple moments. After all, it's the simple things in a relationship that matter. Moments where you feel so in charge, where you blush like crazy, where your heart stops and your stomach churns, moments that make you feel wanted.

Rachel wondered when the last time she felt this happy was and _his_ face instantly materialized before her eyes, Jesse, the guy who wasn't her fiancée, the guy who cracked an egg over her head while knowing that she was a strict vegan, the guy who she was supposed to hate and regard as a bastard that did nothing but damage her, maybe even permanently. Despite how much she wanted them to Rachel's thoughts weren't vengeful instead they were a bit on the loving side. She knew she was supposed to be thinking of ways to end him but instead there she was, thinking of what it would be like to see him again, the real Jesse, the guy she met at the music store not the guy that left her for Vocal Adrenaline, the guy that had her head over heels in love with him, maybe even more three years later.

**_There's a fire startin' in my heart_**_, Rachel sat in the April Rhodes Theatre, practicing her prom performance in front of the AV club and a piano, **reachin' a fever pitch and it's bringin' me out the dark.**_

_She, then, parted her chapsticked lips to sing the next lyric of the song but instead of hearing her own voice roaring through the theatre, she heard one that was all too familiar._

**Finally I can see you crystal clear.**

_Rachel quickly snapped her head towards the entrance of the theatre only to have her heart leap into her throat and her stomach do cartwheels. She saw him leaning against the doorframe, staring at her with his devastating baby blues, scrutinizing her, watching her every move, waiting to see how she'd react to seeing him again._

It's you,_ she almost said out loud but bit the inside of her cheeks to stop herself from actually doing it._

**Go ahead and sell me out and I'll lay your shit bare,**_ His powerful voice echoed through the auditorium, producing a sound any vocal coach would applaud. _

**See how I'll leave with every piece of you**

**Don't underestimate the things that I will do**

_He continued to sing as he took two steps at a time, eager to get closer, his eyes never breaking away from the girl in front of the black Baldwin piano._

**There's a fire starting in my heart**

**Reachin' a fever pitch and it's bringin' me out the dark**

_Rachel's breath hitched in her throat and tried to get her heart to _not_ skip a beat. He was getting too close and too soon. He's not supposed to be back, at least not until she's over him._

**The scars of your love remind me of us**

**They keep me thinkin' that we almost had it all**

_Jesse, being Jesse, stopped in his tracks and started to wave his arms in front of his chest, creating an even more dramatic atmosphere, as he continued to sing the song that basically described his relationship with Rachel Berry._

**The scars of your love, they leave me breathless**

**I can't help feelin'...**

_He joined her on stage waiting for her to contribute, waiting for her voice to melt with his, waiting for her to show a sign she cares. Without a second though, Rachel complied and sang the first lyric of the chorus with him._

**_We could have had it all._**

**A/N: I know this one sucks ass but I hope that by some miracle you like it. I'll hopefully post a new chapter as soon as I can to make it up to you.**

**-Jay**


	3. 2: What if

**A/N: Okay, guys! I am super, super sorry for the late update and I know you have a right to hate me or stop reading! But here is the next installment in Jesse's girl. It's five Word document pages long and I hope it lives up to your expectations and that you enjoy this enough to forgive me.**

**Again, to whatever remaning readers I have, I am exteremly sorry for the delay and I hope you love this story enough to review it. Reviews are my drug :3**

**-Jayxxx**

CHAPTER TWO

Jesse St. James clearly remembered the last time he encountered Rachel Berry. He remembered every lip bite, every word said, every _unsaid_ word and every emotion. It was as electrifying to remember, as it was to experience.

_"Jesse." She said for the tenth time. He let out a soft chuckle, mostly because he kind of expected this reaction, "Yes, Rachel. It's me. I'm back… for five days at least."_

_"W-What are you doing here?" She asked as her eyes darted nervously around the room to see the AV geeks have scurried out of the room, sensing the intensity of the duet would result in, yet another, intense conversation. Her chest heaved up and down as a hurricane of emotions ran through her petite 5'3 feet body. _

_"Ouch." Jesse St. James said in faux-hurt tone as he clutched his hands to his heart, "I missed you, too, Berry."_

_"St. James." Rachel rolled her eyes as her heart thudded through her ears, "You never _just_ come by for a visit. You have a secret agenda. Explain. " She said that last word in an uncharacteristically wobbly voice, clearly remembering the secret agenda he and Shelby Corcoran, Rachel's loving mother, had. She sat down in the middle row of chairs and waited for Jesse to follow her suit. _

_"You always seem to know me too well." Jesse chuckled as he went up the steps, his curly hair bouncing, and sat next to Rachel. _

_She was quiet, her brown eyes were wide and held many contradicting emotions, and her teeth were biting her lower lip unmercifully. He knew that she was nervous but the reason was unclear to him. She should've been kicking him in the balls instead of waiting for him to explain the reason for his abrupt return. She should've been lecturing him on how he shouldn't play with girls' heart instead of unconsciously letting her fingers to lightly touch his. He was dumbfounded and just stared at how her little childish looking fingers were propped on his long manly ones._

_Rachel soon noticed what her ex-boyfriend was staring at and quickly pulled her hand away and cleared her throat to say, "I'm dating Finn again." Her expression fell. Why the hell did she just blurt that out? It wasn't as if Jesse was the one making advances, she was. She was the one holding another guy's hand behind her boyfriend's back. She was the one who was _cheating._ No. No. No. She wasn't cheating on Finn. No. Never. After all she wanted Finn ever since she saw him and although she would never admit it Rachel Berry doesn't trust herself around Jesse St. James._

_"That's good to hear, Rachel." He said with a reluctant smile after examining her face closely, "It's good to see you happy."_

_She stared down at her feet as she thought of the word Jesse had used to describe her relationship with Finn. No matter how much Rachel wanted to believe that she was just that, happy, she doesn't truly she doesn't think she is. No matter how hard she tried with Finn, he never did understand her. No matter how hard she tried with Finn, he doesn't just make her feel like she's The One for him. Deep down, in her heart, Rachel felt like he was with her because he doesn't want to be alone. It felt like he was with her because he was waiting for the next Quinn to come into his life so he could leave her. And she has a reason to feel so, because whenever she puts in a little effort to look better for Finn on their Thursday dates at Breadstix, he never pays her a sweet compliment and his eyes linger a little too long on their young waitress' boobs whenever she bends down to set the orders on their table. He never did all the little things that one certain ex-boyfriend did…_

_But, of course, Rachel would never admit that. She was Rachel Berry, after all, and being wrong about anything, especially her choices, was out of the question._

_"Well." His velvety smooth voice broke the brunette diva out of her stance, "To answer your question earlier, I'm back to see my parents. They want a full report on how I'm doing back at UCLA. Especially father dearest…" He rolled his baby blue eyes and Rachel gave him a sympathetic look. She remembered that Jesse once told her how unsupportive his father was to his singing career, unlike his loving mother, with whom he was closer to. "He still thinks singing is a waste of my valuable time that could be spent at Harvard Law… But if it weren't for my mom and her good convincing skills, I wouldn't be in a performing arts school. But I mainly came to apologize for how crappy I was to you."_

_"R-really?" She sputtered out. She never, ever thought she would see the day that Jesse "stubborn as hell" St. James would apologize for something he did, especially to what he thought would be a good acting exercise._

_"Yeah." He lied, trying to conceal his other reason, "I know I've been a jackass but now I realize how we should all put that behind us and… move on." He said that last bit hesitantly and he felt his heart and all hope he had shatter to a million tiny pieces that could never be mended. "I didn't expect you to be dating again but you are… and that's good." _

_"Thank you, Jesse." She smiled a small, sweet smile, "It's good to have your blessing... and your apology"_

_Rachel seemed to believe all the bull he handed her and he figured that he was a brilliant actor to fool her into thinking that he never cared for her, that he never so much looked at a girl after their breakup, that he never cried for her at night. Yeah, Jesse was a brilliant actor and Rachel believed every single word and action… but he wasn't good enough to fool himself. _

Now, as Jesse sat in the hotel room after Mr. Berry dropped him off, he realized that he made a grave mistake that day. He realized that he should've _really_ told her why he was back to see her. He realized that what he had to say might've prevented the engagement. But he shook all that off and focused on how to fix this shitty mess he put everyone in. He grabbed his rented car keys, all the what ifs and shoulda-coulda-woulda's forgotten, and went off to do what Rachel's father instructed him was the first step and no matter how badass Jesse thought he was, he was scared shitless of Leroy Berry.

Rachel Berry and her best friend, Kurt Hummel, walked to the parking lot in search of the latter's car. They were going to have the ultimate Girl's Night in and talk some more about all things NYADA and the pair were ecstatic to say the least.

"I really think we should start going over song selec—" the Brunette stopped cold in her tracks, making her friend give her a curious glance. Kurt decided that Rachel wouldn't give him any beneficial information so he turned to see what was making his usually confident best friend to be at a loss for words.

His bright coral green eyes widened in disbelief at the sight before him.

Jesse St. James.

Jesse St. James was leaning against a big black car right in front of the school doors, which Rachel and Kurt just exited.

He looked different, Kurt noted.

His hair was cut and coiffed to perfection but he still was the same black outfit obsessed jackass he knew two years ago.

"What the hell is he doing here?" Kurt remarked with a sassy eyebrow raise and a hand on his hips, "Isn't he supposed to be whoring it up with some blonde LA bimbo?"

Soon enough Jesse St. James was face to face with his two old classmates, "For your information, Kurt, dear, I do have a couple of blonde bimbos on standby for when I fly back to L.A. And I give you full permission to tweet about that." he then turned his head to a stunned diva, "Why, hello, Rachel. Isn't it funny how we always seem to find our way back to each other?"


	4. 3: The Berry Men's Cleverly Named Plan

**A/N: Okay, guys. I won't bore you with the details to how I had a massive writers block and had to re-write this chapter a million times. Here it is. Chapter Three. I hope you won't hate me. hehe. that rhymed. Anyways. R&R! Reviews are drugs and I am hooked. :3**

CHAPTER THREE

Jesse St. James kept repeating the steps to the game plan that Leroy and Hiram Berry briefed him on like some kind of mantra as he was driving past Lima.

_'The Talk Rachel Out of Marrying Finn Hudson Plan'_

_STEP ONE: Make Rachel feel in charge of the situation._

_STEP TWO: Prove your point without arguing._

_STEP THREE: Make Rachel believe that you are doing this for her own good._

_STEP FOUR: Tell her you care about her._

_STEP FIVE: If all else fails, bring NAYADA up._

It seemed simple enough. It _was_ simple enough, actually. He suddenly felt eons way more confident than he was before. It _was_ going to work. He _was_ going to talk Rachel out of tying her self down with Hudson. She _was_ going to realize how badly she was ruining her chances at being a star because of some shiny ring and in the same time next year she _was_ going to be attending the college of her dreams in the city of her dreams without her so-called fiancée. It was going to _work_.

Jesse passed by the music store where he had first bumped into Rachel and was, unsurprisingly, plagued by the bittersweet memories of his times with Rachel. He remembered the little concert they held near the sheet music shelf. He remembered the countless times they came into the music store in their free time or whenever they had a glee club assignment. After passing the Lima Bean and Sheets 'N' Things, Jesse found himself in the McKinley High parking lot. He decided to park in the vacant spot that was nearest to the school entrance. He wanted to catch her right after she finished up glee club rehearsals.

* * *

As he was waiting, Jesse began to panic. He knew Rachel Berry and he knew that she wouldn't go down with a fight. She hated it when people scolded her and treated her like a child. He began to feel less confident with Leroy and Hiram's plan. What if Rachel decides to out stubborn herself? What if she decides to run the other way when she saw him walking up to her? What if—

No. Jesse St. James decided. None of that was going to happen. It was going to work. He was going to use every means disposable, including his charm. He was going to talk her out of it because he was Jesse St. James and he could talk anyone out of anything…Even Rachel Barbra Berry.

Soon enough, Rachel Berry was outside the doors with her lovable gay sidekick in tow. She was even more gorgeous than he had last seen her, if that were possible enough to begin with. She had outgrown her last haircut and sported the long brown hair Jesse loved so much. She got rid of the bangs and had her hair pinned at the side. She still had those glimmering chocolate brown eyes and that dazzling smile that never failed to captivate him. Yup, Jesse was still in love with her.

She looked so happy and carefree that Jesse almost_—almost_ decided to back out and drive away but he was Jesse St. James and he never backed away from a challenge, especially if that challenge went by the name of Rachel Berry. So, he stepped out of the car and leaned on it's cool, black exterior, waiting to be noticed. Soon enough, Rachel stops talking and does a back take; Her eyes were staring right at him and he gave her a little smirk and a wave.

Her royal gayness decided to see what the fuss was about and his eyes widened at the sight of Jesse St. James in McKinley again. Kurt, then, turned his porcelain face to talk to Rachel.

"What the hell's he doing here? Isn't he supposed to be whoring it up with some blonde L.A bimbo?" He had asked Rachel loudly in what he thought was a whisper. Jesse couldn't hide his chuckle. _That was typical Kurt Hummel. _Jesse walked up to the pair, his smirk daintily painted on his pretty face.

"For your information, Kurt, dear, I do have a couple of blonde bimbos on standby for when I fly back to L.A and I give you full permission to tweet about that." Jesse's retort was so fast. He had blurted it out so quickly before he could even give it a second thought. He didn't want to start it out this way because he knew Rachel would be on the defense if he showed her his old ways. But, sadly, being witty and downright rude were St. James qualities. They were sown in securely into his DNA and being those things became a second nature to him.

Jesse, his breath hitching, turned to face the love of his life. She was far more beautiful up close. He could even smell her strawberry perfume and her vanilla body lotion. He remembered that Rachel always did have an obsession with bathroom rituals and he loved that about her. It was one of her many quirks.

"Why, hello there, Rachel. Isn't it funny how we always seem to find our way back to each other?"

Rachel Berry just stared at first. He looked so real. His eyes were as blue as ever, his smirk was present, his musky scent surrounded her and the smell of his aftershave was apparent. The only difference is that he had matured looks wise and had cut off the curls Rachel loved and used to run her hands through whenever they were lounging around in her room. The only reason she believed that he wasn't a figment of her imagination is that Kurt had spotted him, too.

Then, Rachel got angry. She hated him. Why did he _always_ have to do this to her? Why did he show up when she was happy? Was he hell bent on seeing her cry? Why did he hate her so much? Why did he have the need to see her crash and burn? Did he enjoy causing her so much pain?

"Yes, very." She snapped, her eyes widened, her nostrils flared and she had her arms crossed. It was clear as day how mad Rachel Berry was. "It's extremely funny, actually, because you seem to have started stalking me the minute I stopped showing interest in you. It's hilarious, really, because every time I try and move on with Finn you blindside me with a visit."

"Stalking you?" Jesse let out his pompous St. James chuckle. A chuckle that Rachel used to adore hearing but at that point that only thing that chuckle did was give his ex-girlfriend a reason to be seething.

The alarms in Rachel's head started going off wildly. Jesse was getting close. He put a hand on her cheek and softly rubbed with his thumb. She felt electricity jolt from his thumb and course through her veins, "As I stated earlier, Berry, I do have blonde bimbos waiting for me back in L.A."

She snapped out of her daze and backed away from Jesse and his fingers because they always seemed to give Rachel clammy hands, butterflies holding a parade in her tummy, and an Olympic running heart. Not that she'd admit any of this to herself. She was supposed to hate Jesse till her dying day because of what he put her through and she was supposed to marry Finn and grow old with him.

"I'll be." Kurt fumbled, trying to excuse himself and give the two some privacy to deal through their baggage. "erm… tweeting in the car about—blonde bimbos! Bye!" He was glad to have finally come up with a reason to rush away into the comforts of his car. He decided to grill Rachel on the deets later or _maybe_ witness the whole shebang with his car window rolled down.

But, honestly, Rachel and Jesse barely noticed him because they were too busy staring at each other—or in Rachel's case glaring—to care whether Kurt was present or not.

"Rachel!" a familiar awkward voice called out from behind the brunette's shoulder. It was Finn Hudson. Jesse crinkled his nose and gritted his teeth. He despised that teenage mutant turtle ninja for many reasons and his compulsion to show up whenever Jesse was within a five-mile radius or Rachel was the biggest reason.

"You forgot your…" Finn trailed off when he had noticed whom Rachel was with. "St. Jackass." His arm quickly went around her waist possessively and he pulled Rachel closer to him.

"Tall, dark and undeniably ugly." Jesse shot back with a defiant grin.

_Some things never change._

"Rachel, _honey,_" Finn, said as he kissed her forehead, trying and successfully irking Jesse. But he and his showface wouldn't give Finn the satisfaction. "Let's go"

Rachel silently nodded as she stared at Jesse for one last moment before looking up to Finn's face with a fake smile that Hudson seemed to have bought. Jesse knew he always did affect Rachel. He also knew that Hudson was a selfish jerk with some form of bipolar. He badly wanted to run after them and punch Finn in the face but he knew that it wouldn't do any good. So, he fisted his hands, trying to keep his cool.

The plan didn't work. Jesse had failed. Now, he had to tell the Berry men all this. And, god knows, this was going to be _fun_.

* * *

Leroy and Hiram Berry stared at the phone that lay on the coffee table. They were waiting for a call from Jesse. He had texted them earlier that day.

_Heading to McKinley. Commencing the 'Talk Rachel out of marrying Finn Hudson' plan._

"Okay, Leroy. I'm officially worried now." Hiram announced, wiping his glasses for the twentieth time (yes, he was counting), an act he usually preformed whenever he felt anxious. "It's been an hour since that text. So why hasn't he call—"

The father's worrisome rant was cut short by what they have been waiting for in the first place, the phone to ring.

The caller ID said _Jesse ._

"Jesse." Leroy said as he put Hiram's white iPhone on speakerphone, "What happened I need a full report."

"Please and thank you!"" Hiram added in an anxious singsong voice for good measure.

"Well, hello to you, too, Mr and Mr. Berry." Jesse dryly replied, "I'm happy to report that your terrific plan didn't work."

"Wha… why?" Hiram whined, "It was foolproof."

"Obviously not." Jesse replied, and both parents could almost see him rolling his eyes, "A fool did ruin the plan and his name was Finn Hudson."

"That damned Hudson kid." Leroy seethed, forgetting his therapist's advice to count to ten whenever he was angry.

"I'll just be on standby waiting for further instructions." Jesse said in his usually calm and collected voice.

* * *

Jesse wanted to hate Rachel just as much as she _acted_ to hate him from the moment she did to him what _any_ performer dreads and triple casted him in that 'Run, Joey, run.' video, shattering his self-worth and making him question whether or not Rachel truly cared for him as she claimed to have. But no matter how hard he tried he couldn't get himself to hate her because he was under her spell. No matter how corny or undeniably cliché it sounded to Jesse, he knew it was true. From the very moment her big brown eyes met his—boom—magic. He felt _drawn_ to her. He felt like he _needed_ to be near her. And he knew what he did to Rachel was pitiful and disgusting. He hated himself for causing her such pain and reminded himself of how broken she looked when she unraveled the truth every single day. She basically haunted his every thought because images of her laughing at something funny he said, images of her eyes lighting up because she saw him, images of their first duet and images of her devastated face all flashed through his eyes every waking hour… always reminding him.

"Okay. That's enough, Jesse." He said to himself as he turned on the faucet of the hotel bathroom sink and started to wash his face, "Stop feeling sorry for yourself."

A loud chirp sounded off from the bedroom. He dried his face and went to investigate. It was his BlackBerry. He had just received a new text message. He pressed the 'READ' button to view it. It was from The Berry Men. It had been an hour since their phone call and he was a bit surprised to hear from them so soon. What he saw was a two-worded text message…and the two words left him nearly paralyzed.

_Shelby Corcran._


	5. 4: Enter Shelby Corcoran

**A/N: I would love to dedicate this chapter to the amazing Ravenna . Solo for her incredible help! She was there for me when I had a massive block and helped me figure out where to take this whole story! So thanks a million for listening to my ramblings, Ravenna! You should really check out her St. Berry fic it really is something! Now... Onto the next installment of this story... Things are still as dramatic as ever! So brace yourselves for one hell of a story!**

**-Jay**

CHAPTER FOUR

Shelby Corcoran was a bit surprised to receive a phone call from Hiram Berry, to say the least. He was frantic. He told her that Rachel was tossing her future out the window and that he needed her help to get his old baby girl back. Shelby was aghast to hear that Finn Hudson, the quarterback with pitch troubles and two left feet, had somehow got Rachel to agree to marrying him. The Rachel she knew wouldn't have done that. She wouldn't have thrown everything to please a guy. She wouldn't have tied herself down with a boy that would only derail her future plans for New York. From what she has heard from her former Vocal Adrenaline star, Jesse, Finn seemed to be the type of guy who wouldn't be supportive of Rachel's future career plans. He was selfish and moody and she knew that Hiram and Leroy weren't big fans by how they spoke of him in the phone call. The Rachel she knew would've been determined to fulfill her New York plans. She would've been the same independent girl she had met a few years ago...

_Shelby Corcoran planted a soft kiss on her daughter's forehead. Beth was fast asleep in her white and pink crib with a soft smile painting her delicate face. With a content sigh, Shelby softly shut the nursery's wooden door and headed to the kitchen. She opened the fridge door and pulled out a pitcher of cold iced tea. She poured some into a glass and sat down to read a romance novel she had bought from the local Barnes & Noble. Since her love life was basically none existent she had decided the best way for her to get a dose of romance was Nicholas Sparks' latest creation. When she had reached page twenty her cell phone began to ring. She had caller ID, like any other person in the twenty first century, but she didn't recognize the number that was displayed on her flashing screen. "Hello?" Shelby said after pressing the green button on her cell phone._

_"Shelby." A shaky voice whimpered, "It's me Hiram Berry."_

_Her breath hitched and she almost dropped the phone on the ground. What would he want from her? She had stayed away from Rachel. Granted, she did try to contact her in an unconventional way that only lead to multiple hearts to break, Rachel's, Jesse's and hers included. She never in her wildest dreams expected to hear from them again. Sure, she had felt instantly guilty when she had pushed Rachel away but the words left her mouth before her brain could process anything. She did want to be in her daughter's life. Her scheme with Jesse only proved that to be a fact but she had said those words and it was too late. Rachel believed them and was hurt. So, she couldn't do anything since Rachel was so stubborn, just like her mother, and if she did, she would only end up getting hurt even more. And Shelby didn't want that. She was a mother, after all, despite what everyone thinks of her. So, she decided to move on and spare Rachel the pain of having her in her life by adopting little Beth, Quinn Fabray's daughter. She snapped out of her daze when she heard Hiram tell her the unsettling news._

_"Rachel's marrying Finn!" He squeaked through the speaker of her Samsung phone._

_"What?" Shelby snapped unable to believe what she had just been told. Hiram sounded so scared and worried that she just _knew_ it wasn't some kind of twisted prank. "Why would she ever do that? She's a smart kid!"_

_"I know but that Hudson brainwashed her." Leroy Berry sounded his thoughts and Shelby knew she was now on speaker. "She's talking more of committing to him than she is about going to college!"_

_"Yes." Hiram confirmed, "She's only applying for one school despite my ramblings on how she should have, at least, three backups but she just says that if she doesn't get accepted she'll settle with Finn in California where he'd be starting his own business!"_

_"What?" Shelby repeated, "Rachel? A housewife? I expected the next time I would hear of her would be if she were on a Broadway show! Never, would I have expected this!"_

_"Yes." Leroy said. "And that's why we need your help."_

_"We need all the help we can get." Hiram sighed. "We even have Jesse on board. He tried talking with her but it _didn't_ work. We seriously don't know what to do and we're hoping you can help us out."_

_Shelby was stunned. "Jesse _didn't_ work?"_

_The silence she received on the other end was an unsettling confirmation of the sad truth. She knew that Jesse had been the first boy Rachel was ever serious about. Even if it was a fluke all along… Shelby still hates her for inflicting so much pain on the sad couple. Jesse had came to herself one night telling her that he cared for her daughter and that he didn't want to see her hurt but Shelby had given him false hope and reassurance… and he had ended up getting as heart broken as her poor daughter was of this whole scheme. She never expected her to fall for him so hard and vice versa. So, she thought that bringing Jesse in as reinforcement would've been a solid plan. He could talk anyone into doing anything and Shelby knew that her daughter wasn't an exception. In fact, she was the biggest example. Somehow, he had gotten under her skin, unlike anyone else, and she had done the same to him. She would've expected seeing Jesse to get some sense into Rachel. She expected that seeing him would trigger all the feelings that were stuffed deep down. She expected her to snap out of it and never marry Finn. But, now, Jesse had failed to work on Rachel. Now, the concerned fathers came to her for help and Shelby knew it was serious, that it wasn't just some childish recklessness that could be easily resolved with a long lecture or heart to heart. This literally meant war. _

_"Yes." The Berry men replied in unison. _

_"I need to meet up with Jesse and establish some kind of game plan." Shelby explained, getting a twisted sense of déjà vu. _

_"Keep us in the loop to what happens with Jesse." Hiram replied. "We'll text him." Leroy said. "I'm sure he'll end up paying us a visit and we'll direct him to wherever you choose to hold that meeting."_

_"The Lima Bean." Shelby replied before hanging up. She put her Nicholas Sparks novel down, bidding it goodbye because she knew that she wouldn't settle down and read it anytime soon. Not until she settled this whole nonsense but now she had to find a sitter on a Saturday on such short notice. God knew this wouldn't be an easy feat._

Now, Shelby Corcoran was at the Lima Bean staring out of the window, waiting for Jesse St. James to make the dramatic entrance she knew he would make anytime soon.

* * *

Jesse St. James reread the text message for the millionth time in a row. Have the Berry men finally gone crazy? What the hell were they thinking? Shelby Corcoran? _Really_? Have they truly lost it? Did they really lose all faith in Rachel? Did they not think it was just a phase she was going through? He thought so. He thought that Rachel would eventually snap out of it. She just needed someone to show her that… and Jesse knew he was supposed to be that person. She was stubborn but he knew he could get through to her if he tried hard enough. She had to have a special place for him… especially after what they have been through and the Berry men seem to believe that she does. So why are they letting Shelby in on it?

Finally, a furious Jesse got out of his hotel room, stormed out of the lobby and got behind the wheel of his black sedan. He kept on driving and he didn't stop until he was at a house with a mailbox that said 'Berry'.

He rang the doorbell consistently until Leroy Berry stood on the other side of the open door. "We've been expecting you."

"Am I really that predictable?" Jesse said through his gritted teeth, "I must be loosing my edge." He rolled his eyes and followed Leroy into the familiar house. Leroy knew that Jesse meant business and quite frankly the man himself wasn't into all the pleasantries, especially if it were with Jesse St. James. He liked to be straightforward and was thankful that Jesse was the same.

Jesse flinched as a ton of memories flooded him. When they had passed the kitchen, he remembered that one time he and Rachel tried to bake brownies but ended up having a food fight. He had so much brownie mix around his mouth and Rachel was very sticky in return but somehow they had ended up kissing. When they had passed the table with many photo frames lined up in the hall, Jesse remembered that when Rachel ran down that same hallway and into his arms so fast that she had tipped over a priceless vase. Hiram really made them have it and explained angrily that the manqué vase was a family heirloom that had gone down through ten generations of the Berry family. He shook those bittersweet memories away as they reached the living room where Hiram was waiting for them, sitting on the overly stuffed couch. Leroy joined him but Jesse was too angry to actually be seated. Instead he started to pace around the room.

"Why the hell would you get Shelby into this?" He seethed, waving his arms around dramatically.

"She can help us."

"Hasn't she _'helped'_ enough!" Jesse spat out, bending his fingers to create quotation marks, "She hurt Rachel."

"And you haven't?" Leroy questioned with a defiant eyebrow raised. He had his fists clenched and Hiram was worried a fight would break out so he decided to take over things as he grabbed his husbands hands to calm him down. "Jesse, you should really think about it. You hurt Rachel, too. I know that you feel bad about it and what to make up for your mistakes. That's why you're here." Hiram said calmly, "I know you care about her and Shelby does. She wants to make up for her mistakes, too. You really should give her a chance to help us fix things. I really believe that without you _both_ on our side we can't ever get our old Rachel back. So, please, Jesse… let her help. Despite everything that happened, she's still Rachel's mom."

Jesse had been clenching and unclenching his fists all through out Hiram Berry's speech but by the end he decided to give in. They did have a point. Rachel needed the people who truly cared about her to work together… not bicker. She needed someone to give her a wakeup call. They knew Rachel didn't know she needed those things but she desperately did. She needed help… and _they_ needed to give her it. But first, Jesse needed to check whether Shelby was serious about being a part of Rachel's life again or not.

"She's waiting for you at the Lima Bean." Said Hiram as he got up and walked over to Jesse. "I knew you'd understand."

* * *

Quinn Fabray couldn't believe her eyes. She had just walked into the Lima Bean and placed her order. As she waited for her name to be called out she stood by the fridge full of sandwiches and other pastries. At first, she thought her eyes were playing tricks on her. She thought it was the remaining regret of giving up Beth that made her see things. She saw Shelby Corcoran sitting on a table by the window. She was fiddling with her phone so she didn't notice Quinn staring.

Quinn had been thinking about Beth way too much lately, unlike Noah. Despite the little moments she had spent with the gorgeous baby girl, Quinn had missed her. She badly wanted to see the same hazel eyes that sparkled up at her when she had first held her. She wanted to hear the same gurgling sounds she had heard emanating from the baby again. Quinn wanted to hold her in her arms again, so, when she saw Shelby in the coffee shop she would've quickly dismissed it, saying that it had been her imagination going wild. But Quinn couldn't say that, no matter how much she wanted to, because, soon enough, Jesse St. James walked in, crossed the room and sat in the empty chair before Shelby. Immediately, Quinn realized that she felt guilty but she wasn't crazy… at least not crazy enough for her imagination to fabricate the least two people she liked.

She quickly ran up to the counter before the barista could say her name out loud. Quinn grabbed her latte walked to a place she was sure Jesse and Shelby wouldn't see her and began to observe. She couldn't hear anything but being Sue Sylvester's minion for the first few years of her high school experience did have its perks. She learned how to read lips.

* * *

Kurt Hummel was a creature of cocky attitude. He prided himself in his ability of creating ensembles that would make Karl Lagerfeld swoon. He wouldn't have minded bragging about how he knew how to cook a flawless Crème Brule and he would've loved to see the look on your face when he told you that he could play the piano. Despite his seemly arrogant ways, Kurt was also very protective of those he loved. So, it was quite normal for him to have the sirens in his head wailing loudly when he had received a text message from one frantic Quinn Fabray.

Rachel and Kurt, despite their initial plans to practice for their pending NYADA auditions, ended up talking about wedding plans… and Kurt wasn't happy at all and he was quite surprised that she hadn't brought Jesse up again after that little encounter earlier. He had expected her to rant about him but she didn't. She acted as though things were fine. She acted as though she didn't just run into the first guy she had told Kurt she thought she _loved_. She never even brought up the _L_ word with Finn. She always just seemed to want him.

He had caught Rachel reading a bridal magazine that was _cleverly_ hidden behind a Barbra songbook she was allegedly going through. But when Rachel didn't flip the page for twenty minutes, Kurt put away the ten songbooks that were on his lap, crossed his room and pulled Rachel's songbook away and saw what she had been actually looking at. He was pissed but Rachel had been so excited and started talking about her wedding dress. Kurt sat down and began to listen to her as the conversation went from dresses to cakes and eventually seating arrangements. Kurt was mainly quiet but nodded where it was needed and replied to her questions with one-worded answers. He loved Rachel, don't get him wrong but he didn't think that her getting married in high school was a great idea… even if she was marrying his lovely stepbrother, Finn. He just thought that they both would be making a mistake they would later on regret. Kurt didn't want two of the most people he loved to end up resenting each other in the future. He wanted them both happy… but Finn and Rachel marrying each other wouldn't. At least, not immediately, he knew that they would be happy all through out the honeymoon phase but when reality would knock on the door… Kurt just shuddered at the thought. When Rachel was going off, describing what would be her ideal floral arrangements for the wedding, Kurt got the message. Rachel oddly didn't hear his phone chirp and didn't even stop talking when Kurt lowered his eyes to read the text. He let out a gasp when he read what was on his cell phone screen.

_Just spotted Jesse St. James talking to Shelby Corcoran. I think they're up to something. -Q_

Below the text was an attached file. Kurt tapped on it and a picture of the duo appeared. They looked like they were at the Lima Bean. They were talking about something… and it looked serious. It was then that Rachel noticed something was wrong, "Kurt, what is it?"

Kurt looked up to meet her gaze with wide, worried eyes. He tried to say something but he just _couldn't_.


End file.
